FAA-Approved Flight Simulators At Van Nuys

"FAA-approved flight simulator" is one of the most misused phrases in aviation marketing. It gets attached to everything from a genuinely certified airline training device to a gaming rig with a nice yoke. The phrase does mean something specific, though, and the specifics decide whether an hour you spend in a machine counts toward a pilot certificate or is simply an hour of fun.

This page explains the FAA's approval categories — BATD, AATD, FTD and full flight simulator — what the Federal Aviation Regulations allow you to credit toward the Private, Instrument, Commercial and ATP certificates, why instrument students get more out of simulator time than anyone else, what an instructor actually does during a session, and how an hour with us at Van Nuys Airport works. If you want the hardware side of the story instead — how a motion platform works and what it feels like — that is on our full-motion flight simulator page.

What "FAA-Approved" Actually Means

The FAA does not approve simulators in a single, generic way. It recognizes several distinct classes of ground training equipment, each held to a different standard of fidelity, and each carrying different rules about how time in it may be logged and credited. A device is not simply approved or not approved; it is approved as something, and that something determines its value to a pilot.

Two things follow from this that are worth stating up front. First, the approval belongs to the device, not to the school — a specific unit is issued a letter of authorization or a qualification, and that document names what it is. Second, credit almost always requires an authorized instructor to be present and to make the logbook entry. A pilot sitting alone in an approved device is generally not accruing creditable training time.

The Four Categories, Explained

The general principle running through the list is that the more faithfully a device reproduces one specific aircraft, and the more rigorously that fidelity has been evaluated, the more the FAA will let you do with it. A generic BATD is useful and cheap. A qualified full flight simulator is enormously capable and costs more per hour than most people spend on a car.

Where Aviation Training Devices Sit

BATDs and AATDs are grouped together as aviation training devices. They are approved by the FAA through a letter of authorization issued to the manufacturer for a specific make and model of device, and that letter spells out what the device may be used for. This is the class most flight schools and most general aviation pilots encounter, and it is the class that matters for anyone working on a private or instrument rating.

Where FTDs And Full Flight Simulators Sit

FTDs and full flight simulators live under a separate qualification regime, are assigned levels, and are periodically re-evaluated. They represent one aircraft type — not "a light single" but a particular airplane, down to the avionics and the systems logic. These are the devices behind airline training footage, and they are the reason an airline pilot can be qualified on a new type without ever having flown the actual aircraft before their first line flight.

How Simulator Time Can Count Toward A Rating

This is the question everyone actually asks, so here is the honest structure of the answer.

Part 61 of the Federal Aviation Regulations sets out the aeronautical experience required for each certificate and rating, and within those requirements it allows a defined portion to be accomplished in a flight simulator or a flight training device rather than in an aircraft. The allowances differ by certificate, by the category of device used, and by whether the training is conducted under Part 61 or inside an approved Part 141 course. Devices used under Part 141 generally carry different — often more generous — allowances than the same training conducted under Part 61.

Instrument Currency, Separately From Ratings

Distinct from earning a rating, the regulations also allow instrument recency of experience — the approaches, holding procedures and course intercepting and tracking a pilot must have flown in the preceding six calendar months to carry instrument privileges — to be accomplished in an approved device. This is one of the most practical uses of a training device in general aviation. Flying six approaches in an airplane costs several hours and a great deal of money; flying them in a device is faster, cheaper, repeatable, and can be paused and reset when something goes wrong.

What Makes The Logbook Entry Valid

Logged device time is generally expected to include the date, the total time, the location, the type and identification of the device, the content of the training, and the name and signature of the authorized instructor who gave it. Sloppy logging is the common failure point — an examiner who cannot tell from your logbook which device you flew and who taught you cannot credit the time. A good instructor writes it correctly the first time.

Approved Training Device Versus Home Simulator

Home flight simulation software has become genuinely excellent, and a well-equipped desktop setup is a good thing to own. It is answering a different question, though, and no amount of hardware changes the regulatory answer.

The honest summary: use a home setup to rehearse a route, learn an avionics box, or practice an instrument scan between lessons. Use an approved device with an instructor when you want the time to count, or when you want somebody watching who can tell you what you are doing wrong.

Why Instrument Students Get The Most Value

Every category of pilot benefits from device time, but instrument students benefit disproportionately, for reasons that are structural rather than promotional.

• Instrument flying is mostly procedure. Intercepting a course, flying a hold, briefing and executing an approach, going missed — these are sequences of decisions and control inputs. A device reproduces all of it faithfully, because none of it depends on feeling the airplane.
• You can repeat the hard part. In an airplane, flying an approach badly costs you a full circuit — climb out, get re-sequenced, come back. In a device the instructor resets you to the final approach fix and you do it again immediately. Ten approaches in an hour is realistic. In an airplane it is not.
• Failures can be introduced safely. Vacuum failure, a dead attitude indicator, partial panel, an alternator dropping offline, an approach flown to minimums in genuine zero visibility — all of it is available on the instructor's panel and none of it is available in a training airplane at any price.
• Weather does not interfere. Instrument training in Southern California has an ironic problem: it is very often clear. Simulated instrument conditions under a view-limiting device are a poor substitute for the real thing. A training device can put you in actual cloud whenever you like.
• Pausing is a teaching tool. The single most valuable button in the room stops the world so an instructor can explain what just happened, while it is still happening.
• The economics are better. Device time plus an instructor costs less than aircraft time plus an instructor, and more of the hour is spent training rather than taxiing, running up and transiting to the practice area.

If you are working toward an instrument rating, our Instrument Rating In Los Angeles page covers what the rating requires and what it costs. If you are earlier than that, Private Pilot License In Los Angeles is the place to start.

What The Instructor Does During A Session

A simulator session without an instructor is a video game with expensive controls. What the instructor contributes is the reason the time is worth anything.

• Sets the objective. The hour starts with a briefing that establishes what you are trying to achieve — a first taste of flying, a specific approach, an emergency procedure, a checkride item you keep failing.
• Runs the environment. Weather, wind, visibility, time of day, aircraft position, system failures and traffic are all set from an instructor station. A skilled instructor adjusts the difficulty continuously so that you are working at the edge of your competence and not beyond it.
• Plays air traffic control. Clearances, vectors, holds, amended approaches and the occasional inconvenient instruction are all delivered live, which is how radio work actually gets learned.
• Corrects in real time. The value of a human being watching is that an error gets named as it happens rather than becoming a habit.
• Uses pause and reposition deliberately. Freezing the scenario to explain something, and repositioning to fly the same segment again, are the two techniques that make a device more efficient than an airplane.
• Logs and signs. If the time is meant to count, the instructor makes the entry and signs it. This is not administrative housekeeping; it is what converts an hour of practice into creditable training.
• Debriefs. Ten minutes at the end covering what went well, what did not, and what to work on next is where most of the actual learning gets consolidated.

How A Session With Us Works

Our simulator experience is $189 for 60 minutes at Van Nuys Airport, with an instructor in the seat beside you for the whole hour. There is no weight limit, and the session is never canceled by weather — which makes it the one aviation experience you can plan a date around with complete confidence.

The hour is built around what you want from it. A first-timer spends it flying somewhere recognizable — downtown Los Angeles, the Hollywood Sign, the coast toward Malibu — with the instructor teaching as they go, and finishes with as many landings as the time allows. A student or rated pilot spends it on approaches, holds, partial panel or whatever the next checkride item is. A nervous flyer spends it understanding what an airplane is doing and why, which is usually the thing that fixes the fear.

If you are booking with the intention of logging the time, tell us when you book. Whether and how the hour applies to your certificate or rating depends on the device and on your training program, and your instructor will confirm that with you directly on the day rather than us guessing about it on a web page.

Full detail on the hardware, on group and event bookings, and on what an hour feels like is on our full-motion flight simulator page. To book a single session, go to the simulator experience booking page.

Simulator Or Real Airplane?

They answer different questions, and a lot of people do both.

The simulator is the better choice if you want to log instrument work, if you want to repeat something until it is right, if weather or a weight limit is in the way, if you are nervous and want a low-stakes first exposure, or if the date is fixed and cannot move. The real airplane is the better choice if what you want is the experience of actually flying — the noise, the acceleration, the view of Los Angeles from three thousand feet, and the knowledge that you were genuinely in control of an aircraft in the sky.

Our blog compares the two directly in Flight Simulator Vs Real Discovery Flight. If you are trying to work out where the whole path leads, Learn To Fly In Los Angeles lays out the certificates, the timelines and the costs.

Common Questions

What Does "FAA-Approved Simulator" Mean?

It means a specific device has been approved or qualified by the FAA in one of the recognized categories — BATD, AATD, FTD or full flight simulator — and carries documentation saying so. It is not a general adjective. A device that is not approved in one of those categories cannot be used for creditable training time no matter how realistic it feels.

What Is The Difference Between A BATD And An AATD?

Both are aviation training devices, but an AATD is held to a higher standard of fidelity in its flight model, controls and avionics. That higher standard is why the regulations permit more creditable time in an AATD than in a BATD.

Can Simulator Hours Count Toward My Private Pilot License?

A limited portion of the required training may be accomplished in an approved device with an authorized instructor. The permitted amount depends on the device category and on whether your training is under Part 61 or Part 141. It is the smallest allowance of any certificate, and your instructor will confirm what applies to you.

How Much Instrument Time Can I Do In A Simulator?

The instrument rating carries the largest proportional device allowance in general aviation, which is why instrument students use devices more than anyone else. The exact permitted figure depends on the device's approval category and on whether you are training under Part 61 or an approved Part 141 course. Ask your instructor to confirm it for your specific situation before you plan your training around a number.

Does My Home Flight Simulator Count For Anything?

Not toward a certificate or toward currency, no matter how good the hardware is. It is genuinely useful for rehearsing procedures, learning avionics and practicing an instrument scan between lessons, and plenty of successful students use one. It simply is not an approved device.

Do I Need An Instructor Present For The Time To Count?

In general, yes. Creditable training time in an approved device requires an authorized instructor to give the training and to make and sign the logbook entry. There are narrow provisions around instrument recency of experience, and your instructor is the right person to explain how those apply to you.

Which Device Do You Have At Van Nuys?

Our simulator is a full-motion device with an instructor running every session. We are not publishing a model designation or a credit-hour figure on this page, because we will not print details about our own equipment that we have not confirmed. Call us and ask, or ask your instructor at the start of your session — you will get a straight answer either way.

Do I Need Any Flying Experience To Book?

No. Most people who book have never touched an aircraft control. The instructor sets the difficulty to match you, and the hour is built around what you want out of it.

Is There A Weight Limit Or An Age Limit?

No weight limit at all — it is the one experience we offer with no weight restriction. Children are welcome; if reaching the rudder pedals is likely to be a question, mention your child's age when you book and we will plan around it.

Can The Session Be Canceled For Weather?

No. The simulator runs whatever the sky is doing. That is one of the reasons people book it for a fixed date or as a backup to a flight.

Can I Book The Simulator For A Group?

Yes — corporate events, team days, birthdays, school and scout groups, and film or television production. Group bookings are arranged by phone rather than online, on (818) 330-1318.

Where To Find Us

We operate from Van Nuys Airport (KVNY) in the San Fernando Valley — 7900 Balboa Blvd, Van Nuys, CA 91406 . Open 9 AM to 9 PM, seven days a week. Call (818) 330-1318, or book a free consultation.

You Fly LA flies discovery flights and simulator sessions. We do not run certificate courses and we do not issue licenses — training toward a rating is done by our sister school, Essence Flight School, on the same field.